


Reunion

by ryttu3k



Series: Simstagram Side Stories [7]
Category: The Sims (Video Games)
Genre: Family, Family Reunions, Gen, Immortality, Vampires
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-11
Updated: 2020-07-11
Packaged: 2021-03-04 17:46:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,249
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25200358
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ryttu3k/pseuds/ryttu3k
Summary: Caleb meets a family member.
Series: Simstagram Side Stories [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1643032
Kudos: 4





	Reunion

**Author's Note:**

> Written as an expansion of my [Simstagram](https://www.instagram.com/calebvvatore/) account for Caleb. Follows on from 'Connection'.

_Uptown, San Myshuno  
6th July 2018, 6:18 PM_

Caleb isn't really expecting the fancy car.

Come to think of it, he's not entirely sure _what_ he's expecting. For all Lilith has reassured him about Raylan Lange, there remains more than a hint of wariness towards his great-great-grandfather.

A vampire, and one who has been around for a long time. A hundred and ninety years, Lilith says; he's older than anyone they would have met before, save for Elle and Straud himself.

And more than that, he's _family_. Lilith has already told him about their resemblance. His genes, his blood - they're his inheritance from Raylan.

He and Lilith are waiting at street level, the vast bulk of Uptown shadowing behind them, when the car pulls up. Lilith grins, bounces a little on the balls of her feet as she opens the front door. "Take the front seat," she tells Caleb, then pokes her head in. "Hey!"

"Hi, Lilith," comes the warm voice from inside, and Caleb starts, because it's so much like his own. "I trust you had a good time?"

"Oh yeah," she smiles, then steps back. "Raylan, this is Caleb!"

They look so _similar_ , like looking in the mirrors that neither of them can use. Caleb blinks. Raylan isn't identical - his face is a little more narrow, skin a touch paler. Eyes a slightly different shape and grey, not brown. His hair is longer, tossed over one shoulder. It's the same chestnut colour, though, and the way he smiles is familiar, the shape of his nose, the brows.

Caleb had inherited those traits from his father. Here is living (or unliving, at least) evidence of where it came from.

"Hey," he says nervously.

Lilith gives him a little shove; Caleb nearly falls into the front passenger seat. Raylan only chuckles. "It's good to finally meet you."

"Yeah. Weird as hell, though," Caleb says with a nervous laugh, righting himself in the seat and buckling up.

"Mm." Raylan is still _staring_. "My goodness. It's one thing knowing I have descendants. Quite another seeing someone who takes so thoroughly after you."

Lilith leans forward from the back seat. "Yeah, I got the Palermo genes from Mum," she confirms. "Caleb looks a ton like Dad, who looks a ton like Nonno."

"Who, presumably, got his appearance from Alessio," Raylan murmurs, and pulls out into the street. "Goodness. I do wonder what Guglielmo must have thought."

Caleb glances back at Lilith; she nods. Alessio, Raylan's son; Alessio, Caleb and Lilith's great-grandfather. And Guglielmo Vatore, family patriarch, from whom Caleb and Lilith inherited a surname and absolutely nothing else.

"Well," she eventually says, "I guess Nonno might know. Guglielmo was around until he was twenty, or something."

Raylan hums, tapping his fingertips on the steering wheel. "Mm. Honestly, I would rather learn more about Alessio," he admits, then falls quiet again.

It's a sore spot, Caleb realises, and sits back in the plush car seat. He knows enough of Raylan's story, now, to understand what he must be thinking; while he will be able to meet his grandson and great-grandson and has now met his great-great-grandson, Raylan has never known his own son.

"I like your car," Caleb says, in lieu of bringing up more painful thoughts.

Raylan glances over and grins a pointed smile. "I do like my cars," he says with a laugh. "Had a lovely Cadillac Coupe deVille in the early sixties. I did have my eye on a gorgeous Chrysler Imperial in the fifties, but it was a touch out of my price range back then. Still, my stocks have been doing pretty well, I might investigate and see if I can find another..."

(Caleb fights to keep his eyes from glazing over. He is decidedly Not A Car Person, despite the invitation; he hasn't even driven since moving to the city.)

Raylan has asked a question, and Caleb blinks to focus again. "What?"

"I said, do you mind music?"

"Oh! Nah, go for it."

Nodding, Raylan taps the sound system. Touch screen, bright blue LEDs, and, of all things, some classical piece bursting from multiple speakers around the car. Caleb jumps a little, glances over his shoulder to see Lilith looking bemused.

It's surreal. The fancy, high-tech car, the classical music, the conversation. He wonders if he'll be like this, this mismatched collection of traits when he's Raylan's age, and forcibly shuts the thought down.

"Tchaikovsky's violin concerto in D major," Raylan says, tapping the steering wheel to the music. There's a blissful smile on his face. "Itzhak Plumbman's 1984 performance. I had the privilege of seeing him perform once, his technique is impeccable."

"Raylan plays the violin," Lilith chirps from the back seat. "I'm trying to see if I can get him to play something composed in, like, the last century."

He's sitting in a fancy car that probably costs more than he'll ever be able to afford, listening to a violin concerto with his nearly two hundred-year-old great-great-grandfather. Caleb simply laughs in disbelief, sits back, and enjoys the ride.

_The Old Boathouse, Brindleton Bay  
6th July 2018, 7:36 PM_

By the time they reach Caleb and Lilith's parents' house in Brindleton Bay, he's managed to relax; Raylan, conversely, is now the one looking anxious. He glances out the tinted window at the house, frowns, rubs his fingertips down his bare forearms.

"The sun's nearly set," Lilith says reassuringly; Caleb nods once as the tinted windows begin making more sense. "So you should be fine just going from the car to the house, right?"

Raylan makes a little uncertain sound. "I know," he murmurs, then shakes his head. "Do you think... this will go well?"

Caleb and Lilith exchange a glance. It's the closest Raylan has come to uncertainty, the unspoken, _will they like me?_ heavy in his voice.

"Yeah, they will." Lilith's voice is firm. "You're family, and you've already proven yourself with helping me. Come on, I wanna see Nonna and Nonno."

She jumps out of the car, opens Raylan's door, practically drags him out. Raylan has just enough time to give Caleb a bemused look before he's hauled out of the car; Caleb laughs and steps out himself.

There's a bark, and Caleb drops to one knee as Tiramisu races out, tail going at a million miles an hour. "Hey, cutie!" he coos, "Wow, you've got so big!"

It was only a few months ago he could easily pick her up, a tiny puppy with lopsided ears. Now, she happily licks his cheek then sprints off to sniff curiously at Raylan, smiling cautiously and holding one hand out for her.

"Hi, Tira," Lilith smiles, scritching behind her ears and glancing back up at the open door. "Hey, Dad!"

Chester smiles warmly at his twins, accepting Lilith's hug. "Hey, guys," he says fondly, then fixes his gaze on Raylan. "And you must be Raylan!"

If it's weird for Caleb, it'd be weird for his father, too. At least Caleb and Raylan look to be a similar age; Chester is now face to face with his great-grandfather, who wears a face that looks even _younger_ than him.

"Chester," Raylan says with a smile, reaching out to shake his hand. "I can't say what a pleasure it is to meet everyone."

"You haven't met everyone yet," Chester points out with a grin. "Come on - come meet your grandson!"

Dad is good like that, Caleb thinks. Artists seem to have some innate skill at looking at someone and immediately getting what they're about, picking up their essence, and knowing what to say to put them at ease. Lilith has the same skill; Maria, Caleb's Nonna, does as well.

Briefly, he wonders if his future sibling will take more after him or after their passionate, fiery mother, Dahlia.

The living room is small. Dahlia is settled on the sofa, hands over her belly; she's a lot bigger than the last time they saw each other. Beside her is Maria, next to Maria is Caleb's grandfather Emanuele, called Manny by all who know him.

Raylan's _grandson_. They certainly do like grandfather and grandson, yes, just not in the ways they actually are.

They get settled in. Lilith chats to Maria about her latest paintings, Caleb settles next to his mother and starts questioning - in the nicest way he can - about if she's resting enough, if she's taking her medication, how the last few appointments have gone. Dahlia is chuckling, answering his interrogation good-naturedly; they're both watching Raylan approach Manny out of the corners of their eyes.

Grandfather and grandson, just not the way people expect.

"Well," Nonno begins, gazing up at his grandfather, "For a start, Alessio always did love music..."

_The Old Boathouse, Brindleton Bay  
6th July 2018, 10:02 PM_

Quieter, now. Caleb, Lilith, and Raylan sit on the stairs of the back porch, listening to the waves rolling in and the cicadas sing through the night. Raylan looks almost drunk on his delight; he has spent hours in the company of his living descendants.

Chester is driving his parents back to their hotel for the night, not wanting to take the train back up to Windenburg that late at night. Dahlia has retreated to bed under strict orders by Lilith. She, Caleb, and Raylan are still wide awake and fully alert, vampires who don't need to sleep, who find the night their home.

Even Caleb. Even he can't resist the comfort of night skies, now.

"So," Raylan says slowly, "Explain to me again what these... chrome things are?"

"Chromosomes?" Caleb confirms, and Raylan nods. "Okay. Well, uh, I don't have a medical degree, but they're basically the bits that make people... look like people, I guess. And the traits you inherit come from those - you get half from each parent. So, like," he adds, glancing back at him, "I would have got the chromosomes that make my nose and mouth and hair colour look like that from Dad, who got them from Nonno, who got them from Alessio, who got them from you."

Raylan looks briefly pleased at that. "That much I understand. To be honest, I'm wondering if Dahlia's child's..." He pauses briefly. "Ah, 'problems' were inherited from me."

Lilith shakes her head. "No, there can be all sorts of copy errors," she says reassuringly, and reaches out to pat his hand. "And the older the mother, the more problems you can get. And three copies of chromosome 21 instead of two is _super_ common in older mothers."

"I have bets on him inheriting our hair colour," Caleb grins, "But yeah, no, Down syndrome just kind of happens. Most important part is that we're going to look after him no matter what, right?"

There's determination and pride in Raylan's face, something unspoken but clear as day. "We will." A smile. "I must admit, I already feel quite protective of this child."

Lilith actually laughs, nudges him. "When Mum asked about giving him 'Raylan' as a middle name, I thought you were going to cry," she teases.

"The names of ancestors for middle names," Raylan murmurs, and covers his face, almost like he'd be covering a blush if he still could. "I have never had anyone named after me."

"You're actually going to meet him, too! I mean, it's not like I met Isabella, and Caleb never met Carina _or_ Antonio. They all died before we were born." She's still buoyant, still smiling; Lilith loves being around family, loves the connections and company. She's thriving on this. "I mean, this is such a cool opportunity! How often do you get to see your family through the generations? You're hanging out with your two great-great-grandkids and you're about to get another. You get to actually _see_ your legacy, not just like... wonder what it'll be like."

Caleb hides a wince. Doesn't raise the thought that's pushed into his head - that, sooner rather than later, he'll see his grandson die; Nonno is already eighty. Will eventually see his great-grandson follow him. One day, not too far away for someone pushing two centuries, he'll see his great-great-grandson die, too.

And where from there? Caleb won't be having kids, and it's very unlikely his little brother will either. Would Lilith risk it, having children, knowing she would outlive them?

Would that legacy end with them, leaving Raylan and Caleb and Lilith to linger, like ghosts amidst the bare branches of the family tree?

For Raylan, having descendants has just been a concept for so long. Now he's spending time with family, and nearly all of them are mortal. What will he do, Caleb wonders, when he realises just what that will involve?

And perhaps Raylan realises that, because he's quiet for a long, lingering moment before he nods once. "I intend to make the most of it," he finally says, "Spending time with my family. Thank you, both."

Caleb ducks his head, fiddles with his bracelets.

"Once Chester is back," he continues, and rises from the stairs, "I think we shall be off. We have a long drive ahead."

"Can I drive a bit?" Lilith asks immediately, "It's like an hour back to San My and three hours between San My and the Hollow, you'll probably be tired after we drop off Caleb, I can totally drive, right?"

Raylan looks a little panicked at the idea of someone touching his beloved car. Lilith laughs at his terrified expression. And Caleb, despite himself, smiles and follows his family back inside.


End file.
